Lily Full Of Hope
by PondGirl11
Summary: If you really loved someone but they couldn't love you back, how far do you go for them? Josh/OC fic set at the beginning of series 7. Currently on hiatus.
1. Josh

**This is my first Waterloo Road fic, so go easy on me! I was so sad when Josh left, it was so cute and I will miss him sooo much, but I will never love Waterloo Road any less!**

Lily stared at her new school uniform with a mixture of disdain and excitement. Waterloo Road wasn't exactly different to her last school, it was still in Rochdale, and the uniform was similar, but it was these similarities that made her feel uneasy. It was going to be made _especially _awkward by the fact that this was her taster day, she wasn't even starting properly yet. She was annoyed to have to move, this was the first day of the new school year and she wasn't going to be coming back for ages after this. Year 9 was a big year; she didn't want to screw it up. At that moment, her mum Lauren walked in, and smiled when she saw her 13-year-old daughter standing in front of the mirror.

'Oh, Lily, you look so grown up! I'm so proud of you, darling, you know that don't you?' Lily shrugged her off.

'Yeah, right. I look like I just got washed up.'

'Honestly, Lily, you look gorgeous, now hurry up, the bus won't wait forever.'

'But it's not even there yet! Can't you just drive me? Please?'

'Alright dear, but as long as you promise to catch the bus home.'

'Thanks mum. We'd better go.'

_2 hours later_

So far, Lily hadn't really made any friends. She was just too shy. In assembly there was a bit of drama, though, as one of the pupils had left her baby at school and no-one knew it was there. It was all a bit much for Lily to take in; she'd been very sheltered from that sort of thing, boys included.

A smiling, curly-haired boy walked up to her shyly, and offered her his hand. She anxiously took it, not sure what he wanted.

'I thought you looked a bit lost. You must be new here. I'm Josh. What's your name?'

'Lily. Lily Longhope. Yeah, it's my taster day. I'm hopefully starting after Christmas.'

'What year are you in? It's just I haven't seen you yet today and you're in none of my lessons.'

'Uh… Year 9. I'm 13, 14 in a few months' time. How about you?'

'I'm 16, I'm in Year 12. So, what do you think of Waterloo Road so far?' He winked at her.

'Dunno, it's nice enough I guess. Is there always so much drama?' He laughed at that. She noted how he threw back his head joyfully when he laughed. At least he wasn't laughing _at_ her. She grinned, glad that someone around here actually found her interesting, or even funny.

'Yeah,' he chuckled, 'although you get used to it. I bet it's a bit strange for you isn't it?'

'A bit. My mum was always very protective of me. She didn't want to get ditched like Dad ditched her. He left when I was a baby, I don't really remember him- sorry, am I blabbing?'

Josh was looking at her with an amused expression. 'No, not at all. Why, do you tend to blab?'

Lily laughed nervously. 'A bit, I guess. Sometimes, when I'm nervous...' She looked at the floor, ears burning, cheeks glowing.

'Am I making you nervous?' Josh laughed.

Lily looked up in horror. Phew, he was smiling. 'Um, yes. I mean no, it's just… Sorry, it's not you; it's just been a hard day. I've got to go.'

'Ok. I'll see you around, Lily!' He walked off, but turned around as he got to the door and waved, before disappearing through the door. It was a cliché, but Lily kept on waving after he'd gone. She turned, smiling, and headed to her next lesson, which was English with Mr Clarkson. What was happening to her? She'd _never_ had a crush on anyone before, and now she had one on someone she'd known for less than a minute. She didn't even know his surname. She made a mental note to find out.

The rest of the day passed by in a blur. She loved English but found that she couldn't concentrate at all. She just kept thinking about Josh, and the way his eyes softened when he smiled, and the kind but bold way he had just approached her after assembly. She hoped she'd bump into him again, but no such luck. She was suddenly struck by how he spoke to her as if she were his equal, even though she was a mere Year 9 and he was a mighty sixth former. She smoothed back her short, straight auburn hair and wished she was in his year, so she could be in classes with him.

By the time she got home Lily was in a daze. She had spent almost the whole afternoon thinking about Josh. She felt faintly ridiculous. Her mother felt anxious when Lily walked dazedly through the door with a small smile on her face, and when she asked her how her day went, she merely nodded, giggled dreamily and skipped upstairs to her room, almost staggering. Mrs Longhope actually worried that she was drunk. But she knew she wouldn't be. She could trust her daughter. God knows, she had never even had a crush before in her life, she was so innocent.

Oh, she was so wrong. If Lily had known what she was thinking, she would have burst into tears and split her sides laughing, she'd feel so ashamed and guilty. And embarrassed.

_4 months later_

Josh was feeling…odd. He just knew he was gay, no way was he straight in any way, shape or form, by any stretch of the imagination. But kept feeling sad, like someone he wanted desperately to remember, and get to know better, had gone forever. It had been at the back of his mind for months, but he couldn't remember for the life of him, even if he searched really hard into the depths of his tortured mind, who it was he was missing. It was like they were so significant to him, but had only been mentioned in fleeting conversation, but he so desperately wanted to meet them. Like a child's hero whose parents know he will never meet them, but encourage him to idolise them all the same. But Josh couldn't think about this now, it was the first day back after Christmas and he had bigger things to worry about. He was probably just being stupid, remembering something not real or from a dream. He shrugged the notion off (it just felt so _real_) and pushed the thought to the back of his mind, and focused on getting back into school and his mates. His problems could wait.

Lily was excited. She knew she had almost forgotten Josh, (_almost_), but she still couldn't wait to see him again. Returning to her own school had seemed like such a bore after the drama and excitement of Waterloo Road. And the promise of friendship. She had been careful not to make friends on her taster day, her mother would have said make some so joining properly wasn't too difficult, but Lily had disagreed. Making friends would have meant she wouldn't see them for four months. She'd probably end up missing them. And missing friends wasn't a good idea for the teenager. She knew what happens when Lily Longhope misses people. Four months away from Josh had proved that. She had spent only a minute with him, but she had spent hours dreaming about him and their future life together. She knew it was sad, shallow and clingy, of course she did, but she just couldn't help it. Without wanting to sound too judgemental, she just wasn't very _good_ at having crushes. She had never had one before, so she didn't know how to behave in that situation, and how to handle it gracefully. The amount of time she spent clockwatching in the holidays was just absurd. It was time to focus on school again. But she just _couldn't_. She had woken up that morning in fits of excitement, anxious to start the new term and day, but more to see Josh again. Had he changed? Would he still remember her? She was about to find out…

Josh couldn't believe his eyes when that dear, sweet girl from his first day back saw him at school that day. Her face just lit up when she saw him, with an expression of love and excitement that surprised even him, but then he remembered how he had been feeling earlier that day in the morning. He then felt sure that his face portrayed the exact same emotion as her, as her smile didn't budge. He ran towards her, and literally had to stop himself for flying at her and giving her a great big hug, as that would've looked well weird at school. Instead, he just grinned at her, soaking in all her enthusiasm. She was the first to break the silence.

'Hey Josh,' she beamed. 'So, how's things since we last spoke?' Since we _first_ spoke, she thought to herself.

'Uh, not too bad, I suppose. Boring old school, same old, same old stuff.'

'Yeah, I guess so. Same with me actually. But I'm really glad to be back. I missed it here, it's really cool here, a lot more drama than with my last school at least, certainly,' she thought for a moment. 'Yeah, definitely.' Then she realised she should probably stop talking now. 'Am I blabbing? I am blabbing. I'll stop blabbing, round about now. Sorry. Again. Did we just have the same conversation as we did the first time?'

Josh was gazing at her dreamily with an amused expression on his face. _Just like the first time_, she thought with a sigh. She gazed into his dreamy eyes, and found herself leaning forward. She could sense Josh also leaning in, his sweet breath hot on her cheek. She thought she had him, until all her dreams from over the past few months were dashed, when he said…

'I think we should know a little more about each other, if we're going to be friends.' _Friends, YES, _thought Lily, _but just friends? I'm gonna have to work on that._ Josh coughed a little, and with a start she realised that her eyes had closed. She shuffled, her cheeks turning red, she was really, really embarrassed. She also realised that she had been half-dreaming when she thought he had leaned in, in fact he had taken a step back in response to her advances, which left her feeling more awful than ever. Normally she expected him to look amused at her individuality, but now he just looked shocked and scared. This threw her off guard. She thought she was about to burst into tears of shame, but she managed, somehow, to pull herself together and stay silent, clam and composed. But this was not how she felt inside. Inside, she was in turmoil. Somehow, she regained enough confidence to speak, but all the while she was thinking _what_ _must he think of me now?..._

'So, yeah, what were you saying, about knowing more about each other?'

'Oh, yeah, by the way, I'm gay.'

Lily felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. She felt winded and literally stepped back and bent over. Josh looked horrified.

'What? There's nothing wrong with that, is there? I didn't really have you down as a homophobe, Lily, but first appearances can be misleading…'

Lily was even more upset and flabbergasted than a moment ago. 'No, no, gosh, no. It was just… a bit blunt and unexpected, that's all. And…' She braced herself, losing her inhibitions but knowing that she would always regret and never forgive herself for what she was about to say… 'I thought you liked me.'

Josh looked pained at this, and suddenly his voice was a lot softer than it had been. 'I'm sorry, Lily, I really am. I mean, I thought I liked you; I was even concerned that I might be bi, but I just don't know. I think I love you, but I just need some time, and give me a bit of space, yeah?' He smiled weakly. 'I'll let you know when I'm not as muddled and I have made up my mind. It's also just, you know, the age gap.'

Lily nodded. 'Yeah, I understand. See you later then?'

Josh nodded sadly. 'Goodbye, Lily. For now, anyway.' And then he bent down and kissed her very deliberately but softly on the cheek. When he pulled away, she automatically put her hand over where his lips had been, and he placed his hand over hers. Then with a final weak smile, he turned and was gone.

Lily kept her hand on her cheek for a long time after he had gone, just staring at where he had been and trying to process everything he had said. She had no idea what was going to happen, but she knew that everything was going to change, and be a lot more complicated and confusing than before. Than it had ever been.

_5 months later_

Lily had almost come to terms with the fact that she could never have Josh. It had taken him a while to figure himself out, but eventually he came to the decision that he was definitely gay and not even his love for his Lily could change that. They had stayed best friends, in fact virtually inseparable, not even the three year age gap could tear them apart. They had become relatively more distant after Josh had admitted to taking drugs, and though Lily had been initially cautious, scared that he might convince her to take them; she had soon come round and helped him through this difficult period. He was soon fine again, and their friendship had continued. Until it went wrong again. Until everything changed…

Lily was struggling to process everything that Mr Clarkson, Josh's dad, was telling her. He was in tears himself, and that alone was enough to freak the innocent Lily out, she had never seen a teacher cry before, let alone her best friends' and love of her life's dad. She knew why he was telling her this face to face rather than let a rumour get to her first; he knew she would be almost inconsolable when she did eventually find out. Better to tell her now when she could be helped. All the teachers understood how much Josh Stevenson meant to Lily Longhope, she devoted all her time to making sure he got better and he was never alone. Josh had a few other friends, but he hardly ever saw them and Lily had no one else, she refused to make friends with anyone other than Josh. The teachers worried that she was unhappy or lonely, but it never seemed to be the case whenever they spoke to her about how things were going in her first year at Waterloo Road. She was top student in nearly all her classes, and not just by chance. She was a bright girl, and probably had been all along, but she worked incredibly hard out of lessons to support her working in class, doing extra research and revision to supplement her. In conjunction with her fantastic behaviour, participation, effort, homework and attendance she was one of the best pupils in the school. Combine all this with her enthusiasm and her ability to listen made a great friend, too. One that Josh certainly couldn't have done without in these past few months. She thought (even though she was also very modest) that she had done an OK job, she had tried her very best with Josh, she was proud of him and he seemed to be on the mend. But now this. Schizophrenia. It was, admittedly, a word she hadn't come across often before, but she thought she knew the basics of what it meant. She didn't think she'd ever need to know. But now Josh had it, and her world was crumbling to pieces.

Mr Clarkson watched Lily Longhope process everything he had said, and with tears in his eyes he painfully bared the silence for her. Letting her figure it out in her own time. She went through a variety of different facial expressions. Surprised, shocked, horrified, distraught, broken. And then an awful kind of blankness, as if she'd shut herself off from his kind words, knowing that with every passing second she shattered like glass a little more. It took her about three minutes to put on an unaffected façade and speak to him.

'Thankyou, Mr Clarkson, for telling me before someone else did.'

'Well, that's just what I thought; I thought maybe it might be easier if it came from me rather than from one of your mates.' Seeing her patient but hasty expression, he silenced himself, and let her continue.

'But I don't really see what I can do. I've tried to help Josh, God knows I have, but he obviously isn't getting any better, I think… yes, I think I've done all I can. I'll leave it up to the experts to sort him out now.' She bowed her head in despair.

'But you can't just give up on him! After all you've been through together, you can't just leave now!' Tom cried.

'Oh, I'm not giving up on him,' she replied calmly, a little too calmly, Tom guessed that she was holding back her emotion. He respected that, so he let her continue. 'I'll never leave him, not for anything, no one can stop me or hold me back. Josh is my only and best friend, and I'll never let him down. I've tried so hard to protect him, and my life has changed so much because of him. I just can't do it any more.'


	2. Lily Plans To Save A Friend

**So started watching Merlin this evening, and was like 'Yay, Merlin!' Bu then I remembered that I need to update my fics :L sorry folks. I love writing these, I really do, and it's just sometimes I am the most forgetful person in the world. I do try my best, honest. By the way, in case anyone gets offended, there will be one teensy little swear word in this next chapter. I didn't just put it in for the sake of it; I genuinely wanted to show how the character feels about this particular person. But it's a really mild one, it's not that bad, honest, I just wanted to let you know just in case.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Waterloo Road, or any of the characters in it, but I do own Lily Longhope, her mum, her twin sister and her dad, (yes she does have those last two, all will be revealed very soon!)**

Tom stared at her in amazement. Never had he heard someone so young speak so eloquently or be so sure of her. The long-suffering teacher was even more surprised when the poor girl just burst into tears. He acted in pure paternal instinct, and gave her an awkward hug. He then realised that she didn't know much about her background. That was something that could have an effect on how she would be able to cope with this sort of thing. It was, after all, a massive setback that no-one was ready for. He decided to be blunt about it. It might help them both, and anyway, he figured that Lily Longhope wasn't one for sentiment. She was awfully distanced about some things.

'So Lily, I know this is gonna sound strange, but can you tell me anything that might help us to help you? For instance, your background, family etc,' Tom inquired.

Lily didn't stare at him in surprise like he presumed she would, but instead just looked… _relieved_. As if she'd been waiting for this opportunity for a while, and just wanted to let it out, as it were.

'Well, my mum and me live on our own, we're fine, we don't need help, we just haven't heard from my dad in a while. He took off when I was about 19 months old. I had a twin as well, but I guess that if she's as much of a bitch that she can't even be bothered to contact me, I don't see why I should either,' Lily gushed.

Tom stared, confounded. 'You have a twin sister?'

'Yep, you'd think that would make a difference to how much she cares about me, wouldn't you? But it doesn't, not one little bit. She doesn't give a damn about me, I've tried to contact her but she's not bothered. Not that I care,' Lily smarted.

Josh could tell that Lily had been seriously hurt by her sister, but she wasn't about to show it. Instead, she was acting all tough and hard just to get through it. But Tom could see the real Lily Longhope behind that cleverly-concealed mask of hers. And he was going to help her take it off.

_The last day of term_

It was the last day of Waterloo Road, ever. Well, in Rochdale at least. Next term, it was all change, with most of the staff and even some of the pupils migrating north to Scotland to have a place in the new, updated, and (hopefully) improved Waterloo Road. Josh and Tom had already announced that they were accompanying Michael there, as after the incident at the party Josh's confidence had been seriously knocked, and Tom was unwilling to force him into a brand new school where he would have none of his old friends, though at least he was sure that Lily would have followed him there if it meant being with him every day. Speaking of Lily, he wasn't quite sure where her position at present regarding the move to Scotland. He knew that she was trying to persuade her mum to let her go, and he knew Eliza just wanted the best for her daughter, but for some reason she was extremely unwilling to let Lily go. Normally she would have leaped at the chance for a change of scenery, without any other children or partner to worry about; Eliza Longhope found it very easy indeed to just up sticks and go at a moment's notice. But she was refusing to let Lily go. And why? Tom had absolutely no idea, but one thing he was certain of: Lily wasn't going to give up _that_ easily.

Lily, of course, had taken matters into her own hands, and had already come up with a plan. She knew how much her mum loved Josh, as she had met him before and had been overwhelmed by his kindness and his manners. She also knew that school had told her about Josh's schizophrenia, and how much Lily was affected by it, something that had deeply both worried and irritated her at the time, she had had no idea how her mum would react to this sudden news. Luckily, her mum was sympathetic and incredibly kind towards him. But she hadn't seen him since he had been diagnosed. Now, Lily was going to play this to her advantage. She approached Josh at the beginning of the day with her, in her mind, simply _excellent _plan.

'So my mum right, she has like _no idea_ what you've been like since you've been diagnosed, and she doesn't fully understand how much we rely on each other every day. So I thought, I'll invite you round tonight and you can explain to my mum why you need me, and she'll see why we can't be separated, and then she'll let me come with you to Scotland! Isn't that brilliant?!'

Josh stared at her in absolute awe, fully proud of her, amazed at how she could be so un-modest and yet so devoted at the same time. Anyone else would have thought she was clingy, even weird, but Josh loved her for it. He was even beginning to wonder if his love for her was purely out of friendship… But he wouldn't complicate things now. He didn't want to confuse Lily at the moment, or get her hopes up. He wanted to sort out some problems of his own first, before he could even begin to question his sexuality. He just laughed happily, kissed her on the nose, and told how awesome she was. Which, in his mind at least, was an awful lot.

Lily stared at the love of her life with a thrill of anticipation running down her spine, excitement building in her stomach. She just knew that her plan would be successful. But at the same time, she felt dread, and a deep sadness inside. What would happen when they got there? What if all her planning was for nothing? What if?...

_Josh fell in love with someone else?_

Lily didn't know it yet, but things weren't always going to go her way in the months to come, and some of her worst fears were about to be realised…

**There you go!**


	3. Lily Goes Walkabout

**Hellooooo! Mega mega mega excited because I am going to LLOOOONNNDDDDOONNNN tomorrow! I lurve it and being from up North it's really really exciting to go down to the South! So sorry if a bit hyper! MMMEEEEOOOOOOWWWWW hehe.**

'CHALKY!' Mr Byrne screamed as the lorry hurtled towards them. Chalky turned, and his eyes widened at the sight before him. The whole group screamed. Then, silence.

_1 hour later_

Everyone had been piled into hospital. A few, Tariq, Denzil, Lily, had still not regained consciousness. Josh, shaking with fear and panic, was helped by his equally shaken father into the same ambulance as Lily. Tom sat at the side and rubbed his hands together anxiously, staring down at the unconscious girl who had saved his son's life. When the lorry had hit them all, Josh was clearly in its direct path. Everything seemed lost, but then Lily had appeared, pushing Josh to the side and leaping in front of him. She had been one of the worst hit. Now she was lying there, half dead, and Josh was hysterical. Tom couldn't see any use in him trying to calm him down. He was in a bad enough state as it was. Lily's breathing became ragged, and as the ambulance pulled away from the devastating scene the paramedics looked on in concern. She was slipping away, they could tell. They had no idea how long she had left. She had been hit almost face-on by the lorry, with only her think coat to protect her. They feared for her life, but they weren't about to give up now. That wasn't their job.

When they arrived at the hospital, Lily, miraculously, started to come round. And apparently, she had no care whatsoever for her wellbeing. She was wired up to an oxygen tank, and her eyes slowly fluttered open. No-one was watching her, and she slowly ripped off the tubes attached to her wrist and chest, and took the mask off. Then, wearing only a hospital sheet and her most concerned face, she quickly tiptoed out of the room. Making sure no-one was following her, she walked, lost, along the many corridors of the hospital, ducking inside a cupboard whenever anyone came past her. If anyone did spot her, she held her chest out and her head up, and smiled, acting as if she was just out for a stroll instead of a mission, and she was recovering instead of being on the verge of unconsciousness. When she finally spotted some of her classmates, she knew she was on the right track. Turning her face away, she slipped into the nearest ward, only to find her reasons for walkabout in there. Josh was fast asleep, blissfully unaware of her entry. She sat on the bed next to him, and smiled, dreamily stroking his hair and whispering soft words of comfort.

She didn't notice Tom watching her in the doorway until it was too late. He ran in, afraid for her, and this sudden shock made Lily's delicate heart quite literally skip a beat. Her eyes rolled back into her head, and she collapsed, Tom catching her just in time. The strain of walking all that way in her current state had severely weakened her.

**Sorry for the embarrassingly short chapter, I planned to spend an hour writing but I got distracted, like usual. Sorry!**


	4. A Recovery, And A Sad Story

**Hey guys! MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL sorry it's just I haven't updated since before Christmas! And guess what? WATERLOO ROAD STARTS AGAIN TONIGHT MEHEHEHEHE Gosh sorry I am just SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited!**

Tom cradled Lily in his arms and whispered soothing words to her while a nurse wrapped her in a blanket and checked her temperature. It was high, very high, and Tom carried her back to her room, where she slept… for four days. By the time she woke up Josh had made a full recovery and was waiting by her bedside every waking moment, in fact he even slept watching over her, but never before he made sure someone was awake and taking care of her. He was overjoyed, of course, when she opened a sleepy eye two days before the new term was due to start.

'Hey, sleepyhead,' he muttered gently as she rubbed her eyes confusedly.

'Where am I? How did I get-'she looked around dazedly? 'Why am I still here? How long have I been asleep?'

'Four days,' Josh attempted to soothed her, 'but don't worry, you're better now, and so am I. You had a nasty bang on your head, that's all. But…' he trailed off heartbrokenly. 'Denzel's gone.'

Lily looked at him in horror. 'Denzel's what?'

Josh looked up at her through his eyelashes, and Lily could see they were wet with tears. 'He died, Lily. There was nothing anyone could do. And Tariq, he… He can't walk, they don't know why. Oh WHY did this have to happen?!'

He was becoming more and more hysterical, and Lily was frozen with her own grief, she could do nothing to help him. Eventually she snapped out of her panic and buzzed for help. A nurse came rushing in.

'Is everything all right, loved? Do you want some more painkillers for your head?' the nurse gushed.

'No, I'm fine thanks, it's just, well, my friend…' she gestured frantically at Josh, surprised that the nurse hadn't noticed the crying teenage boy in the ward yet.

The nurse, however, didn't seem too concerned by him. 'Oh never mind dear, it'll be alright. I've got his dad in the waiting room, would you like me to go and get him?'

'Yes please, thanks,' Lily replied, weak with grief and desperate for Tom's soothing arms.


	5. First Day Back

**Did anyone watch Thursday's episode? I for one thought it was the best one so far this year. What do you think? Lemme know!**

Lily was really dreading going back to school. She knew, deep down, that it was going to be harder for others than her, after all they had known Denzel for longer than she had. But still, she missed him, and didn't yet feel able to confront her fears of grief and her mourning classmates. She had wanted a fresh start, and now even that was going downhill. Fat, ugly tears rolled down her pale cheeks, and she wiped them away, frustrated. Crying was going to get her nowhere. And it certainly wouldn't do Josh any good. Taking a deep breath, she left her room.

Maggie glanced up as she plodded downstairs. Her mother had insisted that she live in the schoolhouse, and Maggie had had many-a-lecture from Lily's mum about breakfast time. Fruit to begin with, then fresh juice, cereal, a fish-oil pill, and chocolate cereal was only allowed on weekends.

She smiled encouragingly at the teenager; she knew how much Lily had been dreading today. When she saw that Lily had been crying, her maternal instincts kicked in and she went into full-on mother mode, much to the discomfort of Lily, who awkwardly returned the huge hug that Maggie gave her. When the others walked in, Lily pulled away sharply, and gave a weak smile of thanks to Maggie.

'Alright Lily? Oh no, sorry, you haven't seen Josh in nearly 24 hours, you must be struggling,' Scout snickered. Lily looked down in shame and mumbled incoherently to herself. 'What's that sweetheart? Can't live without your precious Josh? Well don't worry; I'm sure he can manage a few hours without you without dying. Or he is obsessed with you as much as you are with him?'

Fuming, Lily grabbed her bag, without bothering to pause for breakfast, and stormed out of the door. She could hear the others laughing horribly behind her, and she wiped away the angry tears that were beginning to form in her rubbed-raw eyes. It was hopeless. No-one seemed to understand how ill Josh had been, and how much he needed her. If only they understood, she could breathe.

Arriving at the school gates, Lily paused, feeling tense. She was half an hour early, but she needed the extra time to think before she went to pick up Josh. She needed to sort out her conflicting emotions and work out how she felt so as not to upset Josh. She attempted to calm down, but Scout's words were going round and round her head. Was she really obsessed with him?

The sound of an urgent car horn snapped her out of her reverie, and she realised she was standing in the path of a bright red Ferrari. Apologising profusely, while keeping her eyes transfixed on the glossy paint-job, Lily scuttled off to the side. The beast of a car pulled up beside her, and Lily's eyes widened as an angry Miss Donnegan eyed her furiously, glancing at her uniform suspiciously.

'Watch where you're going, all right? The last thing I need today is a stupid student getting in my way and causing an accident. Who are you? What year are you in? What's your name? And what the hell were you doing in the middle of the bloody road! I've a good mind to put you in detention for the rest of the week. Why are you so early, anyway? Do you even go here?' she rambled.

Lily stared in shock, surprised at the woman's ability to ask so many questions. 'I'm Lily Longhope, year 10, yes I do go here; I was just… annoyed with someone so I came early. And I'm sorry for getting in your way, I was just daydreaming and I didn't realise where I was. I- I like your car Miss Donnegan.' Miss Donnegan just stared at the awkward teenager, startled at the sudden outburst.

'Yes, well…' Lorraine was unsure how to respond to that last remark. It was something that had caught her off guard, that much was certain. Shocked into silence for a moment or two, it became instantly very awkward, and Lorraine realised that the teenager's efforts had been to ease the tension in the first place. 'My office, now. I've got a job for you,' she managed, stammering.

Lily sighed. 'Yes Miss,' and reluctantly followed the red Ferrari into the school. She stumbled up the stone steps, before remembering that she had to pick up Josh. Luckily, he lived just around the corner. Making sure Miss Donnegan wasn't looking, she crept out of the school gates and ran all the way to Josh's house, laughing hysterically all the way and hoping that no-one could see her.

She was still gasping for breath when she finally arrived at Josh's front door. She knocked four times impatiently, and waited anxiously, checking her watch every few seconds. When finally the door opened and a tired looking Josh appeared, she frantically waved and sped off again in the direction of school. Josh, groaning, followed her despite her calls that she had to go, not him.

Lily arrived back at school to find a furious Miss Donnegan staring at her, red-faced, in the entranced. 'And you think you can just leave when I told you to stay, do you? Well let me tell you, Lily Longhope,' she spat nastily, 'you can forget about your breaks this week. In detention, that'll put you in your place. I need you to do something for me, come into my office now. NOW!' she yelled.

'But Miss, I just had to pick up my friend…' Lily protested, but she gave up when she saw that it was no use. She meekly followed Miss Donnegan into the office she shared with Mr Byrne. Miss Donnegan began shuffling papers, and Lily, upon hearing voices, glanced out of the window to see the playground filling up. She didn't recognise many of the students, presumably new ones.

'I need you to show round all the new pupils, Lily. They're due to arrive at my office in about,' she checked her watch, '5 minutes. Could you do that for me? Just show them each department and make sure you deposit them at each of their first classes. That of course means that you'll have less than an hour to show them round. I'm counting on you to be efficient, Lily, don't let me down.'

'Yes Miss, thanks Miss, I will miss. I mean, I won't miss. I won't let you down. I promise,' Lily gushed. Lorraine nodded her approval and thanks and swept out of the office. Lily sat down heavily. Talking to new students? As far as Lily was concerned, that was her worst nightmare. She dreaded how they'd react to the new school, if they didn't like it they'd take it out on her… She panicked.

Trying to walk as calmly and civilly as possible, Lily left the office in search of Josh. She felt she owed him an explanation as to what on earth happened earlier on.

She hadn't exactly had the best start to the new term.


	6. Laney

'Yeah, so this is the main hall. We have assembly in here. And if you come through here,' Lily motioned uninterestedly to the double doors at the other end of the hall, 'you get to the changing rooms. So yeah, that's basically it. Any questions?' She turned around, not expecting any of the 22 new students to be interested enough to ask.

'Yeah, I've got one.' Lily swung around in surprise, to see the owner of the voice grinning unpleasantly at her. She had green eyes and short, wavy, brown hair. Apart from that, she looked… just like Lily.

'Erm, okay, what's your question?' Lily was thrown by this apparent doppelganger suddenly appearing before her.

'Are they any fit lads?' the girl asked, grinning maliciously as if she was planning something horrible.

_Josh, _Lily wanted to say, but she didn't think that was a very good idea. 'Erm, not really. I don't know, I guess I just haven't thought about it…'

'Oh really? That's such a drag!' the annoying girl moaned.

Lily sighed in impatience. 'What was your name again?' she flicked through her list angrily.

'Laney,' the girl smirked. 'Laney Markham.'

'Well Laney, I need to get you to your class, because you're the only one on the other side of the school.


End file.
